Los Angeles

Los Angeles is not a city in the conventional sense — it is a collection of distinct communities spread across 500 square miles of Southern California, held together by freeways, shared mythology, and the peculiar belief that anything is possible here. It is the world capital of the entertainment industry, the most important art market in the US outside New York, a culinary destination of extraordinary range and authenticity, and a coastal city with 75 miles of Pacific beach within its metropolitan area. It is also, in its own sprawling way, one of the most culturally complex places on Earth — a city of 140 languages where Mexico, Korea, Ethiopia, El Salvador, Armenia, and Japan all have their own distinct neighbourhoods.

The Getty Center — Richard Meier's hilltop campus in Brentwood — is one of the great art institutions of the world, and it's free to enter. The Broad on Grand Avenue in downtown holds one of the finest contemporary art collections in America. LACMA's 150,000-work collection spans every culture and era. The Getty Villa in Malibu, a recreation of a Roman seaside villa, houses the world's greatest collection of ancient Greek and Roman art. Los Angeles punches far above its reputation as a shallow entertainment city when it comes to high culture — and few visitors realise it until they're standing inside.

The beaches define LA's social life. Santa Monica's pier and promenade, the Venice Beach boardwalk's organised chaos, the quieter coves of Malibu, and the surfer culture of Manhattan Beach each offer a different relationship with the Pacific. Inland, the Griffith Observatory above Hollywood and the hiking trails of the Santa Monica Mountains provide the city's best views and its breathing space. Eating in LA — from Korean BBQ in Koreatown to Oaxacan food in Boyle Heights, to the farmers' markets of Silver Lake — is one of the great culinary experiences of any American city. The clichés about LA don't prepare you for how much is actually here.